With 220 votes, Rep. Mike Johnson, a lesser-known conservative Republican from Louisiana, has been elected as House speaker. This marks the fourth House Speaker vote since the ousting of Representative Kevin McCarthy over three weeks ago.
On Tuesday night, Oct. 24, Johnson secured the GOP nomination. Rep. Tom Emmer from Minnesota withdrew his nomination shortly after making it.
Johnson has committed to pushing through overdue spending bills and preventing a government shutdown when funding expires on Nov. 17. He is the first Louisiana representative to hold the position.
In his first address as speaker, Johnson expressed a commitment to addressing the challenges facing the American people and restoring faith in the House as a vital institution.
“I wanna say to the American people on behalf of all of us here. We hear you. We know the challenges you are facing,” Johnson said. “We know that there is a lot going on in our country, domestically, and abroad. We are ready to get to work again to solve those problems and we will. Our mission is to serve you well to restore the people’s faith in this house in this great and essential institution.”
As speaker, Johnson will also need to address President Joe Biden’s $106 billion spending request for aid to Israel, Ukraine, and U.S. border security.
